A brief 20-second interchange between Christian Pulisic and a cross did about as much to advance the American soccer player’s reputation in Europe as any full-fledged European career before it.

It was a small moment, but it was almost impossibly significant. Pulisic cut across the Real Madrid back line like a knife working against the grain, cratering Danilo and then depositing a cross into the box that Andre Schurrle finished. It was the Champions League, at home, against the world’s most decorated club, and an 18-year-old American made it look like a Tuesday evening on a back lot in Hershey. In our age of digital proliferation, you can’t put price tags on this sort of notoriety.

Small moments like these change perceptions, maybe a few at a time and then more as each successive paradigm is shattered under the gear teeth of another cross, another embarrassed defender, another goal.

As we close in on what could be a critical weekend in what Sir Alex Ferguson referred to as the “squeaky bum” time of the season. United, Arsenal and Liverpool fans all fall asleep with renewed hope in their hearts.

With City and Chelsea dropping precious points last weekend, the title race door has opened slightly ajar. With that being said a draw at Anfield Sunday would surely leave United behind and most definitely Liverpool, if they both weren’t already.

So how will it fair? Who will finish top four? Who will be crowned Kings of England? Lets take a look at each teams run ins, form and our predictions.

Roberto Mancini was fired as the manager of Manchester City after apparently not fulfilling any of the clubs stated goals (except qualifying for next seasons Champions League). This comes almost exactly one year after Manchester City clinched their first Premier League title in 44 years under Mancini.

With PSG reportedly turning down Real Madrid’s offer to speak to Carlo Ancelotti, it makes me wonder if Real Madrid would be interested in this Italian (Mancini) since it appears they can’t have Ancelotti. After-all, Jose Mourinho is sad at Madrid and apparently wants to leave, which, if he does, leaves a coaching job open.

We have seen some great goals, some bad tackles, and some crazy antics this season in this Premier League, but I think Luis Suarez has just surpassed all of the crazy things that have happened thus far.

During Liverpool’s game versus Chelsea on Sunday, Suarez decided to bite Branislav Ivanovic’s arm. It’s not the first time Suarez has got in trouble for this, after he got a seven-game ban for the same offense while playing for Ajax. Somewhere, Mike Tyson is smiling.

So there’s currently a heated debate going on concerning Margaret Thatcher, the former UK Prime Minister who died earlier this week.

Thatcher’s rule brought about some changes in British soccer as she curtailed hooliganism and introduced fan I.D. cards worldwide. But not everyone was pleased with her futbol influence and it’s led to a little indecision about how to handle her passing. The Premier League is currently not requiring teams to honor her, and that’s not sitting well with everyone.

One moment the game was flowing with the fans heartily cheering on their squads, the next it was all but dark on the field. You know where this is going right? Endless tweets about how Beyonce’s show stole all the power or about how Bane is getting ready to take over the Super Bowl? Not quite.

Head a little more than 4,500 miles east and find your way to Craven Cottage, the footballing grounds of Fulham FC. That’s where the Cottagers had their hands full as they hosted the Premier League leaders, Manchester United on February 2. The match was halted just before halftime after a floodlight failure caused the grounds to go nearly pitch black. The teams went back into the dressing rooms as they waited the ten minutes for the lights to restart.

Manchester United went on to win the match 1-0 on a strike by Wayne Rooney and there were no complaints about the “momentum being halted” by the blackout. Come on NFL, man up!

Just when it seemed like Toronto FC had passed the realm of bizarre, the much-maligned Canadian club wrote another bizarre chapter in its history Tuesday morning.

The club announced the hiring of its eighth coach in seven years, parting ways with Paul Mariner to bring in former D.C. United captain Ryan Nelsen, who currently plays in the Premier League with Queens Park Rangers. That’s where it gets strange: Nelsen was introduced as the club’s head coach Tuesday morning, but without a clear start date as he’s under contract with the London club until June 30.

So Toronto FC is not only hiring a coach without any experience (Fran O’Leary of Bowdoin College is joining the staff as Nelsen’s assistant and will oversee things while he is absent), they are also hiring someone still under contract as a player.

Wonder if that’s ever happened before — where a coach is a player, but at another team.